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Location Battles: Winning the Real Estate Customer's Mind
- In the competitive real estate market, being the first choice in the customer’s mind is crucial. This is the “battle for positions” – the competition for mental share among potential clients.
- The success in real estate is directly proportional to the number of people who think of you when they think of real estate.
- According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), 76% of sellers contact only one agent, 16% contact two. 59% of buyers contact one agent, 22% contact two. Approximately 86.5% of buyers and sellers have space for only one or two real estate agents in their minds.
- Success = k * (number of people who think of you when thinking about real estate), where k reflects service quality and strategy effectiveness.
- In the battle for customers’ minds, you are either in the first or second place, or out of the competition.
- There is a difference between lead generation and lead reception:
- Lead reception relies on passive sources (signs, walk-ins, random referrals) and luck.
- Lead generation is active and systematic, focusing on direct client search and marketing.
- Lead generation should be a priority at all times. It is a continuous process.
- The biggest challenge is maintaining focus on lead generation, regardless of the number of existing leads.
- A lead generation program should always be active.
- Time is critical; lead generation activities should shift towards marketing, which is more time-efficient.
- Marketing is most effective when driven by a database.
- Use 8x8, 33 Touch, and 12 Direct programs for systematic marketing.
- Do not ignore prospecting. Use it to enhance marketing, delegating some to a specialized phone marketer.
- Mastering scripts and dialogues is crucial.
- Recruit proactively, not reactively.
- The ability to generate leads is linked to the ability to compile and market to a large database of contacts.
- The size of the real estate business is directly proportional to the size and quality of the database.
- Investing in building strong relationships with potential clients is the best investment.
Chapter Summary
The chapter explores the “battle of locations” in the real estate market, focusing on securing a prominent position in the potential client’s mind. Success depends on being the first or second choice considered.
Research shows most clients contact only one or two agents, emphasizing the importance of being among the top options. Agent success centers on continuous lead generation. There’s a distinction between lead receiving (passive sources like signs, office duty, accidental referrals) and lead generation (active❓, organized strategies like direct prospecting and marketing❓❓). Maintaining focus on lead generation, even after success, is a key challenge. Successful agents tend to focus on serving existing clients, neglecting new lead generation, leading to a business decline.
A database is the foundation, its size and quality❓ directly correlating with business size and growth. To succeed, agents must be at the forefront of the client’s mind. Lead generation is the most important activity. Agents should adopt active lead generation strategies over passive sources, continuously focusing on lead generation, even after achieving success. Building a strong database is critical for long-term success.
Real estate agents should dedicate significant time and effort to develop and implement effective lead generation strategies and invest in building and developing a strong database. Real estate companies should provide necessary training and support for agents to develop their lead generation and database building skills. Training courses should focus on the importance of lead generation and provide agents with the necessary tools and strategies for success.
The chapter emphasizes shifting from lead receiving to actively generating leads. Strategies include focusing on marketing (more time-efficient than prospecting), database marketing (targeted messaging), using regular communication programs (e.g., “8x8,” “33 Touch,” “12 Direct”) to maintain mindshare, not neglecting prospecting (to augment marketing and delegate tasks), mastering scripts/dialogues for all team members, and proactive hiring of talent.
In essence, “battle of locations” means winning mindshare, requiring continuous, organized lead generation, a strong database, and effective marketing strategies.
